Write two reflection response in Political science at least 250~300 words.
Write two reflection response in Political science at least 250~300 words.
Respond to the postings of a least two other students, one from each of the two threads, no later than midnight on May 21. What are the strengths and shortcomings of the other students'' arguments? How could their arguments be strengthened?
Q :Should the United States should join the International Criminal Court?
Classmate's answer A : U.S. in the ICC
The independently functioning international criminal court is a system that prosecutes individuals and governments for international war crimes. Not only does it focus on war crimes but “crimes against humanity, genocide, and crimes of aggression” (Nau 268).The United States is full of talk with its lofty democratic ideals and the idea that everything will be brought to justice yet refuses to stand trial for its own crimes. The United states should join the ICC specifically because of the crimes against humanity that it has caused. I believe the United States should join the International Criminal court because it will promote international justice by exposing ill minded American officials.
The America that fought for democracy and human rights is no longer in that battle, it is a business built around politically corrupt minded officials. Dambisa Moyo from the Huffington post said “America in practice is a far cry from America, the moral torchbearer and defender of human rights, of fairness and justice, of what is good and decent” (Moyo 4). Yes, America does its job in keeping its people satisfied, but the crimes against humanity it has inflicted and is currently inflicting in places such as Iraq during the Bush administration, Afghanistan, and the Mexican deportation going on during the Trump administration should not go unseen. Article 7 of the Rome statute of the ICC identify crimes against humanity as: “Extermination, Enslavement, Deportation or forcible transfer of population, severe deprivation of physical liberty, torture, Persecution against any identifiable group (religion)” (Rome 3). The U.S. has numerously committed these crimes and that is the very reason it does not want to be a part of the ICC. The unification of the U.S. and the ICC will radiate a more peaceful America and exploit but bring to justice ill minded American officials.
The reason the U.S gave for not joining the ICC is that “The ICC might prosecute U.S. soldiers since the US has the most deployed soldiers all around the world” (Nau 268). I believe the real reason behind not joining the ICC is so it protects the highest officials in power who order the soldiers to execute their orders. Take into account what the ICC might have done to George W. Bush after falsely accusing Iraq of weapons of mass destruction that they never found yet resulted in civilians death (History staff). Take into account Bush's other accusation after the 9/11 attack that was directly addressed towards Afghanistan and branding the religion of Islam with terrorism (History Staff). Of Course with the amount of power the United States has, they would not want to be obligated to listen yet alone prosecuted by an international criminal court.
Take a look at the Trump administration right now and his outrageous unrighteousness towards humanity. President Trump placed a travel ban against Iran, Libya, Syria, Yemen, Somalia, Sudan which are all Muslim and limited a cap of 50,000 refugee’s (Valverde). Trump is planning to Build a war on the southern border of Mexico and is "hiring 10,000 more immigration officers to remove undocumented immigrants out which will tear families apart" (Valverde). With that being said, Trump has expanded the “deportation priorities which will give a wider range of categories” on the reasons to why someone is being deported (Valverde). If the United States was to join the ICC then it would positively impact benevolent decisions made by officials of higher-power. It will disallow Trump like activity, such as placing a travel ban that was distinctively targeting Islam.
The U.S. is an incredibly strong country and could care less what others think of it and that shouldn't be the case. The reason America is so recognized and sought after is because it fought other nations for democracy and the right for everyone to have a voice. If America is the true torchbearer of democracy and justice then it should find it within itself to prosecute the highest of officials when their actions deemed unjust, yet it's proven with the Bush Administration and now the Trump administration, that it fails to do so. It’s time that America should stand by its word and get prosecuted for its wrongdoings, and for that reason, join the ICC.
My reply to a friend discussion :
Classmate's answer B : U.S. Out of the ICC
The United States should not join the International Criminal Court (ICC) because the court is flawed, politically influenced, and abuses its power over the U.N. Security Council and goes outside of its’ jurisdiction. U.S. membership would it expose American officials and service people to politically motivated harassment.
In ten years of existence, the ICC has opened formal investigations into 28 cases. Yet, it has completed just one, raising concerns regarding the effectiveness of the court. There are three problems with actual trial process. The first one is that the trials are usually long, and long trials are expensive. The second problem is that the ICC is unable to assure the basic rights of the accused. This threatens the court’s legitimacy. The last problem with the trial process is that the tribunal’s inefficiency undermines the alleged criminals.
The ICC is politically influenced because any official that works for the ICC has lifetime immunity and high diplomatic status. This is unethical because the court judges, prosecutors, or personnel has the ability to go into any nation that ratified the Roman Statute and do anything without having the consequence of personal accountability. This is completely against the U.S. ideology because in this country, presidents and officials can be held responsible for their actions while in office or after their terms. One reason the U.S. government was reluctant to sign the treaty establishing the court was that it feared that American soldiers would be tried by the court for what some view as war crimes. Others feared a court that could use the armed forces of one nation to go after criminals in another, take them to be tried in a third, and imprison any convicted in still another, as if there were a world government. There is purposely no central power for the ICC because the whole point of the court is to be flexible and suited for all nations, but that leads to instability and corruption.
Although it is generally considered to be a part of the U.N., the ICC in reality is an independent body that is overseen by the nations that have ratified the Rome Statute. The ICC had a legal limit set on them by the U.N. Security Council in 1993, but in the court goes about influencing decisions outside those limits. The ICC claims jurisdiction over every person, whether or not the individual’s nation is a part of the system. The court lacks legal safeguards because there is no guarantee of due process and there is no jury, or right to a public and speed trial. Any prosecutor that is apart of the ICC can conduct independent investigations and then arrest/charge anyone in any nation that is within the jurisdiction. The ICC is a foreign court, in a foreign land, with foreign judges. This is a problem because not everyone’s ideals, opinions, and cultures are the same as the U.S. and there will be disagreements on some cases.
If the United States became members of this system, they would get exposed and taken advantage of because their power would be stripped by foreign judges and institutions. The whole point of a nation is for it to be able to govern itself and by joining, the U.S. would not be able to do so in the justice department. This whole thing counteracts the ideology of the U.S. government.
In conclusion, the United States of America should not join the International Criminal Court because of the courts subjection to political influence and inefficiency, the stepping out of its jurisdiction, and the unfair lack of accountability passed on to ICC judges, prosecutors, and personnel. The International Criminal Court aims to determine the guilt or innocence of people accused of heinous crimes, particularly genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes. Honorable as its intentions may be, I believe that the US should not join the ICC.
My reply to a friend discussion :
